Welcome To Modoc County
Modoc County, The CAGenWeb Project The CAGenWeb Project Modoc County, California USGenWeb Project, Free Genealogy

My name is Julie Appletoft. I am the person responsible for Modoc County, CAGenWeb. If you would like to contribute your information to this page, please contact me at Julie Appletoft. If you would like to host a county of your own please contact the State California Coordinator Richard S. Wilson.
Basic History of Modoc County

Modoc county was a part of the Utah Territory, and then transferred into the Nevada Territory when it was created. When Nevada became a state, Modoc County was placed within the boundaries of California, becoming a part of Shasta County. Shasta County contained what is now Shasta, Siskiyou, Tehama, Lassen and Modoc counties. Shasta County was divided into two counties in 1852, Shasta and Siskiyou, with Modoc being placed in Siskiyou County.

In 1872, an effort was made by the residents of Surprise Valley, along with others who had settled in this area, to form a new county. On February 17, 1874, a bill was passed and signed by then Governor Newton Booth authorizing the formation of a new county -- Modoc. It was first purposed to name the new county "Canby" for the General who lost his life in the Modoc Indian War. Later name "Summit" was suggested but there were many objections and it was finally named Modoc.

Modoc county is the most northeastern county of California and is bounded on the north by the state of Oregon, on the east by the State of Nevada, on the south by Lassen County Ca., and on the west by Siskiyou county Ca. Modoc county received its name from the celebrated Native American Indian tribe whose fierce resistance to the progress of the whites in their settlement of the country made this section notorious over the wild United States.

An election was held on May 5, 1874, to elect county officials and to select a county seat. Lake City received the highest votes as to being the county seat; however, the county fathers decided to make Dorris Bridge (now Alturas) the county seat, as it contained the majority of people. It was also felt that Dorris Bridge would serve the interests of the new county to better advantage than Lake City, as it was located at the crossroads of the main north-south and east-west routes.



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Please contact me and include "Modoc County Look Up" in the subject line.

Anyone interested in helping do research or look ups can also contact me at the above email address. If you know of any additional resources about Modoc County such as biographies, family trees, pictures, etc. that can be listed, please send them or contact me if you prefer to mail them via USPS. All help is welcomed and deeply appreciated!

 

This Web page is sponsored on behalf of the California portion of The USGenWeb Project by Richard S. Wilson. Although believed to be correct as presented, if you note any corrections, changes, additions, or find that any links provided on this page are not functioning properly please contact the County Coordinator for prompt attention to the matter.

Last updated July 2008